I stood before the Demon of Dreams, facing all its profane glory.
When it opened its eyes, its pupils trembled violently before stopping and focusing on me.
In the next moment, a scream flooded the black void... a scream like a knife scraping against glass.
This thing had no mouth, so who knew where that sound came from?
The tentacles moved, purple energy flowing within them—and so did I. My essence stirred and enveloped me, then I condensed it in my hand, forming a blade of raw essence.
It wasn’t long, only about thirty centimeters, but it was better than fighting barehanded and throwing punches at this slimy thing.
The emotions I had sealed away earlier surged within me and turned into raw rage... after all, who wouldn’t feel something after killing their family, even if they were just fog-covered copies?
But I didn’t let the anger cloud my judgment.
I advanced toward the Demon of Dreams.
Of course, it didn’t just watch.
The screech grew louder as it lashed one of its tentacles toward me at insane speed.
I dodged it as it passed by and struck the void beside me, producing a loud whipping sound. In the next moment, two more tentacles came rushing at me.
I leaned my body and avoided the first.
Thanks to my perception, I knew when they moved, how they moved, and even the path they would take.
The second passed by me by a hair’s breadth, whipping the void.
But this vile monster possessed some degree of rational thinking.
The tentacles that had passed me returned from behind, trying to grab me and coil around me, but I moved the hand holding the essence blade swiftly and slashed at one of them.
The blade sank into the slimy flesh and cut through it rapidly. In the next moment, part of a tentacle fell to the ground, purple fluid pouring from the remaining stump.
The screech of the Demon of Dreams rose and filled every corner of the black void.
As I cut through the other two tentacles around me, I felt many more limbs lashing toward me... far more this time.
It seemed it had grown angry.
When I saw a sea of tentacles whipping toward me, I knew there was no chance to dodge this, so I wrapped my body in a layer of essence and raised my arms in a defensive stance.
The tentacles struck me with force equal to that of a rank 3 monster from the test.
I felt my bones shatter and my body tear apart as I was sent flying backward at insane speed. But I didn’t keep flying forever—soon, my body slammed into an invisible wall.
The boundary of this black space the creature had created in the dream world.
The moment my body stopped, I ignored the pain and surged forward again, healing the fractures in my body as I moved.
To end this thing, I had to reach that ball of flesh and eyes.
But that was easier said than done. The moment I started closing the distance, more tentacles lashed toward me.
...
Outside the dream, moments after everyone had fallen asleep.
Lucas stood in the cockpit, searching for the buttons to open the armored doors, a wide smile on his face.
He was pleased that everything had gone exactly as he expected.
After some searching, he found the controls responsible for opening the train doors and pressed them all. The doors in every carriage opened.
"Now all that’s left is to empty everything out and prepare the evidence," he muttered, turning to leave the cockpit—only to stop in place.
"Oh, I almost forgot."
With those words, he pulled a sword from his storage ring and moved toward the bodies of the guard and the train captain.
With a swift motion, he severed their heads effortlessly, blood splattering across the floor and forming a small pool.
He nodded."Alright, this is good."
Then he exited the cockpit.
Only to find five masked individuals boarding the carriage through the open door.
They stood there in silence for a few moments before their leader stepped toward the smiling Lucas—the same person who had shattered the cube earlier.
He stopped a few steps away from Lucas, his deep voice emerging from behind the mask."It seems everything went as you planned, Lucas." His tone suggested they had known each other for a long time.
"Of course. Did you doubt the information I had, my friend? In any case, let’s start moving the Relic to the ship. We don’t have all the time in the world," Lucas replied.
Then he turned his attention to the people behind him."Move. Open all the vaults, then carry the crates containing the artifacts outside... but stay cautious, and as a precaution, don’t open the crates without my permission."
Everyone nodded at his words, only for one of them to ask from behind their mask... or her mask, judging by the voice."Do we kill everyone here?"
Lucas smiled."No... only kill the guards, and don’t touch the Axis students. I still need them in the future."
With those words, the four moved to carry out their tasks, leaving only Lucas and the other person behind.
Lucas looked at him."You see, my friend? I told you. With all these artifacts, we’ll rise within the Mind Faction, and they might even give us that serum."
The Mind Faction was part of the Void system.
In truth, the Void system wasn’t unified—it was divided into seven different factions, and Lucas and these people were part of the Mind Faction, under the command of one of the Seven Axis.
It was true that they didn’t fight each other, but they didn’t agree either. That spark between the factions was always present.
The masked man sighed."Yes, my friend... we did it."
...
Caius’ POV
I moved rapidly through the black void, while those damned tentacles continued to lash toward me.
I could see the severed parts scattered everywhere, yet I still couldn’t get close to its core.
Even if its body was weak compared to monsters of the same rank, it was still considered rank 5... and the gap between us was still vast.
Even skill was useless when dozens of tentacles lashed toward you at the same time, each carrying enough power to break bones.
And it did...
Several times, I took direct hits that resulted in severe injuries.
If not for my regeneration ability, I would have died long ago.
But with every regeneration, a large portion of my essence was consumed, to the point that I focused only on healing the vital parts.
As I was thinking about my next move, I felt something new enter this space.
A human soul.
And I didn’t even need to look to know who it was...